Chelsea have become a club publicly obsessed with the Champions League in recent years, every dashed pursuit fuelling frustration that their trophy cabinet remains bereft of a European Cup. Yet scratch below the surface of this squad and priorities may actually lie elsewhere. Ashley Cole arrived at Stamford Bridge as a two-times league title winner but his thirst for more has hardly been quenched. "I've not won the Premier League with Chelsea and all the guys hate it here when we miss out," he said. "For me, above everything else, I want to win another title."

They have endured too long as also-rans, with resentment simmering in west London at the sight of Manchester United regaining their domestic dominance. The successive Premier Leagues claimed during José Mourinho's tenure had suggested the tide had changed, only for Sir Alex Ferguson to trump the Portuguese's achievements with championship successes in the last three seasons. In that time, Cole, Frank Lampard and John Terry have grown used to the playful taunts of Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand, England colleagues but United title winners, at national team gatherings. By the end of this season they hope to have a riposte.

At Stamford Bridge tomorrow afternoon the challengers can open a five-point lead over the champions and inflict psychological as well as mathematical damage upon United. The new chief executive, Ron Gourlay, as thrilled as the owner, Roman Abramovich, by the scintillating football produced to date under Carlo Ancelotti, said this week that Chelsea "do lead very well from the front", with this an opportunity to prove as much. For Cole, a player desperate to emulate his achievements at Arsenal in 2002 and 2004, this occasion represents an opportunity that cannot be passed up.

"Everything is in place here for us to win the title, and going five points clear of United at this stage of the season would be a huge psychological advantage for us," said the England full-back. "To get further away from them, give ourselves a bit of breathing space ... it would just be huge to beat them on Sunday. Everyone says it but, if you finish above United, you're going to win the league. It's as simple as that, so that is our aim. Sure, it'll be tense because both sides know it's unthinkable to lose the game, so it's big for both of us, but it'll be a battle and one we think we can win. Particularly with the way we've been playing recently.

"Arsène Wenger used to say to us that if you win the league, to go through 38 league games and beat all the really tough sides out there, then you qualify as a 'great team'. Look how many good teams you're competing with: United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur. So to win the Premier League proves you are a top team. That's what we all want and to achieve that here would be fantastic. This season is harder, too, because people are dropping points. Everyone thought we were going to cruise it at Wigan but a lot of teams have strengthened their squads. That makes it even tougher still."

United have not won at Stamford Bridge since 2002 and Ancelotti spoke yesterday of potential weaknesses at the champions' core, admitting that they "lose something" when Rio Ferdinand is absent, as he will be tomorrow, and were harried and nullified in midfield by Liverpool earlier this month. "Liverpool didn't give United any possibility to play like that they want to play, and that was a good lesson forus because United can suffer when there's pressure on their midfielders," said the Italian. "It was a good lesson for us because United can suffer when there's pressure on their midfielders," the manager said.

Yet, rather than becoming obsessed with chinks in their opponents' armour, Chelsea's recent record – they have won all nine homes games in all competitions under Ancelotti, conceding only once – demands they concentrate on their own qualities. Chief among them will be the power and presence of a revitalised Didier Drogba, leaving United clinging to the hope that Nemanja Vidic is fit and focused to confront and compete with the Ivorian.

"He's unstoppable at the moment," added Cole. "Even things he probably doesn't mean to do are coming off for him. He's on fire – he's strong, powerful and everything you give him he'll finish. When you have players like that on form, this looks a great team to be in. Whoever plays against Didier at the moment will be in for a tough time.

"In some ways, that's another reason why we need to get a few more points clear of United now while we can, because we will miss Didier, Salomon [Kalou], Michael Essien and Mikel John Obi at the African Cup of Nations in January. But that's for the future. This is a chance for us, with an international break coming up as well, to get clear." Meeting up with England next week for the friendly against Brazil would be a lot more bearable for the Chelsea contingent if they can point to a five-point advantage at the top.

Ashley Cole v Patrice Evra

The former Arsenal and England left-back Nigel Winterburn tells Joe Matthews how he rates Chelsea and Manchester United's No3s, arguably the world's best

One-on-one defending

Despite their freedom going forward these are two excellent ball-winners, so it is a very difficult area to tell them apart. They share an aggressive tough-tackling style of defending. I think Ashley has a very slight edge, because he is that little bit more dogged in the challenge, but it is marginal

Verdict Cole

Positioning

It is another difficult feature of their game to separate them on, since 50% or 60% of their time is spent on the attack. They are both top-flight defenders in their prime and they are both on top form at the moment. In terms of their positional sense, it would be impossible to choose a winner

Verdict level

Going forward

Both defenders are enjoying the freedom they have been given to get forward, but they do so in different ways. Evra tends to get to the byline more regularly and he can deliver a decent cross. Ashley is a bit more direct when he comes up the pitch and finds himself in the opposition box more regularly. Since Ashley was a winger in his younger days I think he is the slightly more comfortable ball-carrier, but they are both world-class

Verdict Cole

Athleticism

The two players are extremely athletic, in different ways. Although both have huge engines, Evra is bulkier and has a stronger core. Ashley makes up for this by being incredibly agile and nimble all over the park. It would be like splitting hairs choosing between them, considering the amount of ground they cover in a game and the standard they keep producing at the top level